Adjusting means for railway brakes



June 30, 1925.

C. O. ANDERSON ADJUSTING MEANS FOR RAILWAY BRAKES Filed May 12. 19

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Patented June 30, 1925.

UNITED STATES CHARLES 0. ANDERSON, OF OMAHA, NEBRASKA.

ADJUSTING MEANS FOR RAILWAY BRAKES.

Application filed May 12, 1924. Serial No. 712,774.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, Cinemas 0. ANDER- soN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Omaha, in the county of Douglas and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Adjusting Means for Railway Brakes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to manual adjusting means for railway brakes, and it is the object thereof to provide simple means which may be added to the present standard brake equipment, to enable closer or more accurate adjustment of the slack or clearance between the brakeshoes and wheels when the brakes are in released position, whereby to secure more uniform travel of the air-brake-piston in the application of the brakes, with a corresponding uniformity of cylinder-pressure and braking pressure.

Constructions embodying my invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical section, partly diagrammatic, of a cartruck having my adjusting means applied to the brake-rigging thereof, Fig. 2 is a detail side view of the dead-'lever-guide and upper end of the dead-lever, showing one manner in which my adjusting means may be applied in practice, Fig. 3 is a plan View of the same, Fig. 4 is a detail side view of the detachable head for the dead-lever, Fig. 5 is a section on the line 55 of Fig. 1-, 6 is a side view of the upper portion of the dead-lever, Fig. 7 is anend view of a slightly different form of the detachable head for the dead-lever, Fig. 8 is a side view of the same, and Fig. 9 is a detail plan view of the dead-lever-guide and deadlever with integral head, as employed in the structure shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to Fig. 1, there are represented portions of an ordinary or standard brakerigging as applied to trucks of frelght cars, the principal members indicated in the figure being the wheels 10, the side-frame 11, a portion of the bolster 12, the, brake-shoes 13, brake-beams 14 and 15, beam-hangers 16, the brake-rod 17 by tension of which the brakes are applied, the live-lever 18, the dead-lever l9, and the bottom-rod 20 which connects the lower ends of the livelever and dead-lever. All of the foregoing parts will be understood to be of ordinary construction and to operate in the usual manner. In the customary construction, the upper end of the dead lever is pivotally connected or fulcrumed to a dead-leverguide which is carried upon the bolster, said guide having therein a series of holes through which. the fulcrum-pin may be passed to connect the lever with the guide in adjusted relations suited to the state of wear of the brake-shoes.

In the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 9 the dead-lever guide 21 is substantiallv of the usual form, the end of said guide being pivotally connected with a lug 22 on the bolster, and the guide being curved to conform approximately with an are de scribed about the axis of the connection be tween the dead-lever and the respective brake-beam. The guide is formed from a flat bar which is doubled to form parallel sides, the same being spaced apart suffi ciently to receive the end of the dead-lever between them. In said parallel sides of the guide there are the usual series of holes 23 for the fulcrum-pin 2 1, said holes be ing uniformly spaced longitudinally of the guide. It will be obvious that as the minimum distance between the successive holes 23 must be greater than the diameter of the fulcrum-pin, and the diameter of said pin must be such as to have the required strength, the changing of the lever-fulcrum from one of the holes to another will effect a relatively large variation of the brakeshoe-clearance. In actual practice, the centerto-center spacing of the holes in the deadlever-guide is usually 1 inches, the diameter of the fulcrum-pin is 1 inch, and the variation of braking-pressure resulting from increased or decreased piston-travel of the air-brakes, is undesirably great when the dead-lever fulcrum is changed from one hole to the next on the guide. This result is obviatedin my improved construction by providing upon the upper end of the dead lever an elongated head having therein a plurality of holes, spaced differently from the holes in the guide, so that pairs of the holes in said head and the guide will be brought into register successively by variations in the relation of the lever and guide less in extent than the distance between successive holes in the guide. In the structure represented in Figs. 1 and 9, the

head 25 is formed integrally with the upper end of the dead-lever, and there is provided in said head three holes of which the spacing is greater by one-third than the spacing of the holes in the guide. For

example, if the spacing of holes in the guide 7 is 1 inches, the spacing "of the holes :in the head should be two'inches, if three holes are provided in the head. Referring to Fig. 1, it may be seen that if the i111- crum-pin 24: be withdrawn and the dead lever moved, relatively to the guide, onethirdof the distance between the centers or the-holes in*the-guid'e, another pair of holes in the'lcverand guide will come into register, so that the fulcrum pin may be inserted "therein. Th-us amuch-more accurateadjustment of thebrake shoe clearancewmay beeifectedthanis possible by the usual means provided for connecting the dead-lever and the-guide. 'Any'desired numberot holes may be providedrinthe head of the dead-lever, the spacing ofsaid holes being in such proportionto the spacin'grof theholes in; the-guide as to successively come into register with the'latter by uniform variations in: the: relation or the lever and'guide. I

instead" of the head formed integrally with the dead-lever, a-separate or detachable head maybe employed,.such headbeing secured upon-the 'end-ofthe ordinary deadlever. In the structure represented'inFigs. 2 to 6, inclusive,the head 35 isformed'with a central socket or recess into which" the upper end of the dead-lever fitsythe fulcrum-pilrhole"34 inthe lever being'in registerwith the-central hole- 33 in "the'head. Lugs 36-extend from thehead at the sides of the lever, and-a bolt or rivet 37, passing. throughregistering holes in said lugs and the lever, fixedly secures said parts together. W'Viththe head 35 .it isnecessary to employa special; guide" 31, of which'the sides are spaced apart sufiici-ently to receive between them both thehead and lever, instead of being spaced to receive. only" the lever.

In Figs. 8' and-9 is. represented another form of separate or :deta chable head" for the dead-lever, saidheadbeing adapted for use with .theordinnry guide 21in which the sidesare spaced on'ly'far enough apart to receive the endcf the lever between "them;

Said head has side portionswhich straddle over. the outer sides of the guide, the guidelying between saidside-portions as indicated by dotted lines in F 7, and beneatlrtheguide is a. socket portion 46 whichffits upon the upper portion of the lever and is fixedly secured thereto by bolts or rivets passed through holes 47 in said socket-portion.

VVhere-rny invention is to 'be supplied for brake equipment now in use, the, simplest way in which the change can be made is to place upon the dead-levers the heads of the last-described f0rm,=and to supply fulcrumupon the dead-levers the=integralT-heads 52.5, as first describedand as shown in Figs. 1- and 9.

Now, having described my invention, what Iclaim. and desire "to secure by Let ters Patentis:

1. Railway-brake adjusting means, comprising, in combination, a dead-lever-guide' having aseries o1"- longitudinally spaced fulcrum-pin holes, a dcad-lever, anelongated head on 'said dead-lever adjoining said guide, saidheadhaving a plurality of fulcrum pin holes spaced differently from the holes inthe guide, and adapted to register successively with the holes in theguide'by relative movement of the lever and guide less than the distance between successive holes-in the guide.

2. In a railway brakenmechanism, the combination witha deaddeveig and a deadlever guidehaving a series of-longitudinally spaced fulcrum-pin holes therein, of a head carried by-said lever adjoining said guide, said head having aplurality of fulcrumpin holes spaced 'in vernier-like relation to the-holes in the guide, whereby the holes in the; head may" register successively with holes :in the guide when the lever is at adjusted positions intermediate those in which-any one hole of the head is in register witha hole *in theguide, andafulcruni-pin insertible through the registering holes to connect the lever and'guide in said intermediate positions of adjustment.

. 3. A structure as setforthin claim 2, in whichthe head is formed-separately from the body. of the deadd-ever and is provided with a socket for receiving theeud of said lever, and means forfixetlly connecting the head and lever.

- CHARLES O. ANDERSON. 

